Courtyard House: From Bloodsucking Jia Zhangshi to Industrial Giant

Chapter 10 upgrade, a qualitative leap!

"Tomorrow."

Jia Dongxu placed an egg on his plate: "It's easier to get things done if you know someone. Third Grandfather, you can stay in our courtyard tonight. I'll take you to report for duty first thing tomorrow morning."

Although he was just an ordinary worker in the steel rolling mill, his third grandfather wanted to become a cadre in the factory!

Jia Dongxu really wanted to bring his third grandfather into the factory. Just thinking about the envious looks from his coworkers made him a little excited.

Zhang Chengfei declined his niece's son's invitation, saying that his paperwork was still at the school and it would be better for him to go back.

Just as Jia Dongxu was about to say something more, he saw his mother, Zhang Erya, give him a wink, and gently shook her head.

Jia Dongxu swallowed back what he was about to say. After the meal, the family chatted for a few more minutes before Zhang Chengfei took his leave.

It wasn't that he didn't want to stay any longer; it was just that buses stopped running early these days.

The five members of the Jia family saw Zhang Chengfei off at the bus stop. Jia Zhangshi expressed deep remorse for not being able to take her third uncle back to school by bicycle due to their poor financial situation.

Qin Huairu had never seen her mother-in-law like this since she married into the courtyard house in 1950. At this moment, she stared wide-eyed at her mother-in-law.

If she hadn't known her mother-in-law's background and guessed that she was after Zhang Chengfei's status as a cadre, she might have actually believed that her mother-in-law had a deep blood relationship with this nominal third uncle.

Upon seeing the No. 2 bus carrying a gas cylinder approaching from afar, Jia Zhangshi immediately rushed to the front of the bus queue.

As soon as the bus came to a swaying stop, she rushed forward and used her large body to block the door, displaying an imposing presence that seemed to hold off a thousand men. At the same time, she turned and called out to Zhang Chengfei, "Third Uncle, Third Uncle, come quick!"

"Don't push! No one is allowed to push! If my third uncle doesn't get on the bus, nobody else is!"

Ah, this...

Seeing the car door blocked by her and the angry other people waiting behind her, Zhang Chengfei quickly pulled his chubby niece away: "There are plenty of empty seats, line up, one by one."

He said that, but in his heart he was actually cheering for another wave of defense penetration.

To be honest, finding Zhang Erya was the right decision. Just by catching a bus, I managed to earn 68 points of dislike for him.

This isn't some old hag from a TV drama; she's a veritable treasure trove!

When Jia Zhangshi heard her third uncle say this, and saw that everyone else had boarded the bus while her third uncle had fallen behind, she pouted in dissatisfaction: "Third Uncle, you're just too kind. When you're squeezing onto a bus, whoever gets on first wins."

Zhang Chengfei pretended not to hear her words and waved goodbye to Jia Dongxu and Qin Huairu.

After boarding the bus, Zhang Chengfei gave the ticket seller two cents, received a receipt, put it in his pocket, and found a window seat to sit down.

"One skill point costs one hundred dislike points to exchange, so six points..." Zhang Chengfei suddenly became curious.

I just lay in bed and slept soundly for one night, and suddenly I gained 600 dislike points?

Curious, he opened the details in the lower right corner of the panel and then discovered...

Yan Bugui's dislike level increased by 59.

Yi Zhonghai's dislike level +68

Dislike rating for bangs +129

Xu Damao...

Good heavens, the names of almost every resident of the courtyard house are listed. What exactly did Zhang Erya do after leaving the courtyard house yesterday to attract so much disdain?

Zhang Chengfei was both curious and regretful. If he had known that Zhang Erya was going to cause trouble at night, he would not have gone back to school and would have stayed at their house instead.

Regardless of the circumstances, I'm guaranteed to make a profit this time.

Pulling himself out of his thoughts, Zhang Chengfei opened the lunchbox lid, stirred the already soaked noodles, and began to eat heartily.

A breakfast of instant noodles and a carton of milk might not be considered healthy in later generations, but in this era of calorie scarcity, it was a rare feast.

With everything ready, Zhang Chengfei boarded a bus, preparing to head to the steel rolling mill's affiliated machinery factory for his report.

These days, buses are slow, partly because they're inefficient and partly because they break down easily.

As the bus broke down for the third time, the passengers, bored, began chatting amongst themselves. Some discussed the booming sales of radios, while others talked about the first five-year plan, the country's imminent industrialization, and catching up with and surpassing the United States.

The man next to Zhang Chengfei was talking to an acquaintance in the front row about the reclamation of their hometown village.

"Now that life is better, everyone is working hard and wants to reach a higher level."

Reclaiming wasteland is a good thing, but cultivating it is too troublesome.

His acquaintances also confirmed this, saying that when they went to help their relatives in the countryside to hoe the fields, "I got two big blisters after only ten minutes."

"Farming is tough..." they both exclaimed in unison.

"It would be great if there were some tools that could help with land clearing and free people's hands," said the man who started the conversation.

In the front row, his friend shook his head: "I heard it exists abroad, but here... the foundation is too weak, it's difficult."

The casual conversation between the two stirred something in Zhang Chengfei's mind. He took out a piece of draft paper and, based on his memories from his previous life, slowly drew a blueprint for a mini-tiller.

After finishing the drawing, I admired it and found that my skill level had indeed improved significantly compared to the original.

Zhang Chengfei was slightly excited: "Just from bronze to silver is a qualitative leap, if we go any higher..."

As the bus arrived at the station, Zhang Chengfei was about to put the draft paper into his spatial storage when he suddenly had a flash of inspiration. He casually folded it and put it in his shirt pocket, deliberately leaving one corner sticking out.

After getting off the car, Zhang Chengfei walked towards the Hongxing Steel Rolling Mill. He was stopped by the gatekeeper as soon as he reached the entrance.

"Comrade, who are you looking for?"

Zhang Chengfei handed over the registration certificate.

"Wow, a top student!" The doorman looked at Zhang Chengfei again, his eyes now filled with respect. "Young man, work hard after you start working; you have a bright future!"

The country had only been established for a few years and was in the early stages of industrialization. Most people had a natural respect for highly educated people, especially those with mechanical engineering backgrounds.

Zhang Chengfei smiled shyly: "You flatter me, sir."

The doorman, always friendly, patted him on the shoulder: "Not bad, young man. Alright, if you need anything at the factory, just come to me. My surname is Qin, you can just call me Uncle Qin."

"Uncle Qin?" Zhang Chengfei's eyes suddenly became a little strange. He wanted to look down to broaden his horizons, but he was afraid that this old man would think he was a pervert.

After saying goodbye to the overly friendly Uncle Qin, Zhang Chengfei followed his directions and headed to the personnel department.

The machinery factory shared the same premises as the steel rolling mill, including the office area.

If you walk about 300 meters forward from the factory entrance, you'll see a four-story building. The three floors are used by the steel rolling mill, and the first floor is used by the machinery factory.

As Zhang Chengfei passed by the second floor, he noticed a sign on an office that read "Personnel Department of the Steel Rolling Mill".

Upon reaching the fourth floor, they discovered that the machinery factory was actually displaying a sign for the personnel department. But then again, the two factories were of different scales.

After liberation, the steel rolling mill underwent a public-private partnership, with the Lou family donating all their shares. After the first Five-Year Plan, it expanded multiple times and is now a department-level unit.

As for the machinery factory? Zhang Chengfei specifically asked around and was told that the factory was a supporting facility built for the steel rolling mill after it became a state-owned enterprise.

From the moment the factory was built, it had two tasks: one was to produce (and imitate) agricultural machinery according to plan, and the other was to support the steel rolling mill by repairing its machine tools and performing auxiliary operations.

The machine repair shop had been established for three years and had only a little over two hundred people in total, which was incomparable to the scale of the steel rolling mill.

However, small factories also have their advantages. The most obvious advantage is that they are easier to get ahead in the industry.

The personnel department door was open, and inside there were several desks, with several people sitting at their respective positions, busy at work.

Zhang Chengfei didn't rush in. Instead, he knocked on the door and politely asked, "Excuse me, is this where new employees report for duty at the machine repair shop?"

A middle-aged woman with a ponytail looked up and asked in a distant tone, "And you are?"

"I am a graduate of Sijiucheng Mechanical School, and I am here to report to the factory."

"Oh? Please come in." The woman immediately changed her expression, smiling as she let Zhang Chengfei in, and took the files, registration certificate, and other documents from his hands.

After carefully verifying all the information, the woman became even more enthusiastic: "Ever since we learned that a new technician had been assigned, our Factory Director Feng has been eagerly awaiting it... Now, we've finally got you here."

Zhang Chengfei was a little confused. Even if the machine factory was small, the factory director shouldn't be so agitated because of a new technician, right?

Still eagerly awaiting it? He seriously suspected that the woman in front of him was exaggerating, flattering him. But he was just a newcomer, why would she flatter him?

While Zhang Chengfei was still completely confused, the woman had already packed up his documents and stood up: "Comrade Zhang Chengfei, come with me."

Although Zhang Chengfei was completely baffled, he still obediently followed the woman.

On the way from the personnel department to the factory director's office, the woman briefly told Zhang Chengfei that most of the talent in their factory's technical department had been poached by the steel rolling mill.

"Our Director Feng doesn't want to release them, but the steel rolling mill is a big factory and our leader. Their Director Yang is very tough. He said that the machinery factory serves the steel rolling mill, and now that the steel rolling mill needs talent, of course they should be given priority."

She told Zhang Chengfei that the work of the machinery factory's technical department had been greatly affected because five of the eight technicians had been poached.

"Later, our factory director Feng worked hard and finally secured three allocation quotas."

"Three? Have the other two technicians already reported for duty?" Zhang Chengfei asked curiously.